How to get honest answers from prospective employer to sensitive questions...Urgent Care interview

[quietmedic]

Hey all.

Thankfully, at that point where I can start seriously interviewing the interviewer at prospective new Urgent Care job.

Wondering what a diplomatic way would be to ask some of the following crucial questions...without sounding suspicious, picky, defensive or as a weak candidate. Admittedly, some of these are obviously from past personal experience which I did not enjoy and would like to not repeat...

(1) What's you ACTUAL typical volume, not your worst-case-busy-Saturday-night-volume...don't just tell me the standard "4 patients per hour" or "40 patients per shift". Give me an idea of the daily flow here.

(2) What's your supervisory style...will you call me after every patient and nitpick my chart and  treatment choices, because they aren't your exact style, or will you let me practice as I consider appropriate, usual and customary and respect my clinical style as long as it is reasonable?

(3) Are you the kind of supervisory doc who will stroll in on Saturday night after your golf game, when I may have 2 laceration repairs in progress, an I&D waiting in another treatment room, two URIs waiting down the hall, a dehydration victim I'm rehydrating, and a bunch of antsy "I-need-to-be-seen-now-because-this-is-Urgent-Care" type of people in the waiting rooms, and start yelling at me because I can't wrap up all three procedures in 12 minutes total? Or are you the kind that will jump in, say "darn, that's a lot of procedure work, let me help ya out and knock one out for you, as I see you are up to your knees in it!" ?

(4) Are my suggestions, advice, thoughts on improving the practice and suggestions to fix problems going to be ignored because "this is just the way things run and you're a small cog", or will my input, based on experience, actually mean something here?

Thanks all...

[UGoLong]

I doubt you’ll get the answers you’d like by asking. Perhaps you could network a bit with people who used to work there and hopefully spend time with people who work there now. Then you could ask a few open-ended questions, as well as watch things in action.

In the end, you will have to depend on your gut as you can’t collect all of the data you’d like to.


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[sas5814]

You can ask these questions or something like them in an interview. I did. I asked specifically what the typical numbers were like (there isn't typical. Summers are slow, winters are bad).

I said the relationship between me and the SP was an important part of my consideration and I want to be treated like a valued colleague and not a second class citizen. Then I waited to see how he responded. You'll know if he/she is being upfront by the way they answer.

How is workflow decided? What is the staffing model? What are your policies on OT? Are we staffed well enough taking time off is an issue? Work/life balance is very important to me.

 

Just ask in a way that makes it sound like you are concerned with being a good member of a great team. Then you can ask whatever you like.

 

I would also say that during the interview for my current position the medical director brought me into a room with a PA and an NP and told me to ask them whatever I wanted. He would be in his office when I was done. They weren't cherry picked. They just happened to be who was working that day.

[BayPAC]

You can always ask these questions but nothing better than than shadowing someone. I asked to shadow a PA before accepting my current position and was allowed to. After shadowing a PA for 1 day, 8am-5pm, I liked what I saw and ended up accepting the job.  

[quietmedic]

2 hours ago, sas5814 said:

I would also say that during the interview for my current position the medical director brought me into a room with a PA and an NP and told me to ask them whatever I wanted. He would be in his office when I was done. They weren't cherry picked. They just happened to be who was working that day.

That's amazing!  That's the sign of a boss who at least seems to trying for transparency.

[quietmedic]

1 hour ago, BayPAC said:

You can always ask these questions but nothing better than than shadowing someone. I asked to shadow a PA before accepting my current position and was allowed to. After shadowing a PA for 1 day, 8am-5pm, I liked what I saw and ended up accepting the job.  

Yeah, I am strongly considering asking about shadowing.

[Cideous]

I second the shadow.  It's the only real way to tell what a practice looks like when you get down into the weeds.  Spend a good 4 hours at what they consider a busy time of the day.  Honestly, the request to shadow a few hours makes you look better to the employer.  It says this person is serious.

[PACJD]

Agreed.. shadowing is a great idea if you can (my hospital does not allow it for some reason).

When i went on interviews the hiring manager usually introduced me to others colleagues working. I was usually able to get their numbers and they were always happy to share the nitty gritty details of the position which was helpful. 

[CAdamsPAC]

Find out about the support staff, RNs, LPN,MAs roles I briefly work in a WIC/UC where the Ma's thought they had a say in my clinical activities and decisions. The physician/owner didn't want to reign them in from suggesting to the patients what I should prescribe or order!